Misanthropy is nothing new for Daniel Clowes - witness the casts of enormously appealing negativists in "Ghost World" and "Art School Confidential" - but the Oakland cartoonist delivers what may be his most fully fleshed portrait of human solitude, mixed with biting humor, in his new graphic novel "Wilson" (Drawn and Quarterly; 80 pages; $21.95). The story, set in a drab and nail-salon-rich Oakland, follows an embittered hermit whose life is altered by unexpected family drama (we won't spoil it for you). The panels are drawn in a variety of linear styles, all in Clowes' distinctive muted colors. Deceptively simple yet always poignant, the images never fail to captivate, pulling us into a world in which we glimpse the starkness and beauty of everyday life.